


Icing Problem

by Havepenwillimagine (starchan007)



Series: Temperature Control [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: M/M, Misunderstandings, Pre-Slash, Stony - Freeform, Superheroes being stubborn, Superhusbands, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-15
Updated: 2013-03-09
Packaged: 2017-11-25 16:02:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/640589
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starchan007/pseuds/Havepenwillimagine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony Stark knows how to deal with icing problems, but there’s one he’s never been able to figure out…</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It was an icing problem. 

Tony didn’t know how to describe it. Except unlike the one that had occurred during his first trials with the Iron Man armor, Tony had no clue how to fix this one. Hell, he didn’t even know what had caused it, the way Captain America’s whole demeanor seemed to change whenever he walked into a room. It was like someone had just dumped a bucket of ice cold water over the man’s head or something. He would sort of just freeze up, look Tony over, and then this pinched sort of look would appear on his face before he politely –because Captain America was _always_ polite of course, the smug bastard – excused himself from the room. 

He didn’t spend any more time with Tony than he had to. And he never called him Tony. Out in the field it was ‘Iron Man, what’s your twenty?’ and off it was, ‘Stark, you need to learn how to follow orders’. He was never rude or impolite, exactly – Except when he was yelling, and even then it depended on who was doing the yelling because being yelled at by Captain America was a whole different ballgame than being yelled at by Steve Rogers, contrary to what everyone else seemed to think – but it was never just ‘Tony’. Well that was just fine - fine with a capital F, in fact. Tony Stark, the genius-billionaire-playboy-philanthropist, didn’t need _Captain America’s_ approval. Like he had once told the man himself, Captain America was just a science experiment, and underneath his ‘heroics’ he was just an out of his time and out of his league nobody. It was hard to believe he was the guy his dad had never shut up about… 

_“Sir, Captain Rogers has requested entry into the workshop.”_ Tony’s music stopped abruptly to be replaced by the AI’s voice. 

Tony paused for a moment, flipping the welding visor up before telling JARVIS to let the other man in. The door slid open and Steve Rogers stepped into the room looking rather lost, as he usually did when confronted with an overload of technology. Not that the guy hadn’t managed to pick up most things with remarkable speed, but there was always this stunned type of look that appeared on his face when he came up against something like Tony’s hologram interfaces, as if he couldn’t quite wrap his head around it. Like a kid who wasn’t quite sure if the magic show at the carnival was real.

Tony spun around on his stool, hair disheveled, grease smudged over one of his cheeks, and a well-rehearsed and equally well-used smile on his face. “What can I do for you Capsicle?” he asked, watching the look that crossed the man’s face with a sort of self-satisfied pleasure. If the man was going to act like an ice cube around him, then Tony might as well work with what he had. The strained look had reappeared on Steve’s face, but there was something else to it; the tips of his ears, Tony noticed, were bright red, almost as if he were embarrassed about something… 

“I think I might’ve…broken the microwave.” The soldier said.

Had it not been for the rather tense atmosphere, Tony would’ve laughed. He could just picture it; Steve, who tried so hard with everyone and everything _but_ Tony, staring at the buttons trying to work it out, getting frustrated, pushing the number pads just a little too hard… He supposed he should also be annoyed. He’d never had to fix so many things before offering the rest of the Avengers a place to stay. That’s right. Tony Stark, generosity embodied, had invited an entire group of super-powered misfits to live with him. In his own house. Tower. Whatever. One might think that this particular act of kindness would’ve softened the good Captain’s attitude towards him, but no. Of course Steve had made it clear how grateful he was and how good it would be for team unity and all that. But that was it. It hadn’t made a difference, really. Things were every bit as awkward and uncomfortable as ever, just like the silence that filled the workshop at the present moment. 

“Right. Well, I’ll fix it later.” Tony said, turning back to the table. 

He could tell that Steve hadn’t left yet, but was just standing there behind him, watching him or something. Tony was about to turn and tell him to get out or at least stop staring when he heard the door slide open and closed again and he was alone. He sighed and rubbed a hand over his face. 

“JARVIS, it’s quiet in here. What’s wrong with this picture?” The music was back on and Tony let it drown out everything else while he worked. 

Or while he tried to work anyways. He couldn’t concentrate anymore. Why was that? Nearly every interaction he ever had with America’s Golden Boy always left a bitter taste in his mouth and left him unable to focus on the task at hand. He might as well go fix the microwave since he obviously wasn’t getting anything else done in the lab tonight. 

The kitchen was empty when he walked in, though he hadn’t really expected otherwise. It was late; he was probably the only one awake right now. He had never really been one for keeping normal hours. Someone – Steve, he was almost certain – had written a neat little note and stuck it to the front of the appliance informing everyone that it was ‘out of order’ and requesting that they ‘please do not use’ it. Tony set his tool kit on the counter and leaned back, stretching before tearing the note off and tossing it in the trash. Out of order….well, they’d see about that. 

An hour or two later and Tony had not only repaired the circuit board under the button pad, but had upgraded it to make perfect popcorn, gave it a setting for frozen dinners and was now trying to make it more energy efficient, just because he was Tony Stark and he could. And then someone cleared their throat. Tony jumped a little and spun around. Steve was standing there in sweats and a shirt that seemed…just a little too small for him. Must’ve been hard to find clothing that would fit over all those muscles…Tony gave a slight shake of the head. 

“You’re doing that now?” Steve asked, and there was something strange to it, under the questioning tone. Surprise maybe? Yeah, that was probably it. 

“Uh, yeah. I am. Something wrong with that?” Tony asked, leaning back against the counter with his arms crossed over his chest, already feeling as if he needed to be on the defensive. 

Steve just looked at him, didn’t move, didn’t say anything, but Tony could already see his eyes icing over, that chilled look returning to them, like it always did when he looked at Tony. What was he still standing there for anyways? Tony raised an eyebrow. 

“So are you just going to stand there and stare at me all night? Because I could give you a better view than this.”

“Do you need any help?” 

They both spoke at the same time and Tony realized his blunder just a second too late, like always. Something seemed to shift behind Steve’s eyes, though his expression didn’t really change. But Tony would swear the tips of his ears were red, like he was trying very hard to keep a blush off his face. Or like he was just trying not to snap. Tony almost felt guilty. But hey, he had never claimed to be above teasing. And Steve had been the one staring after all so he deserved -

“You don’t like me.”

It wasn’t a question, but the unspoken ‘why?’ hovered between them in the silence and Tony couldn’t believe he was hearing this. Oh this was great, this was just fantastic. And this was way to cliché. He was not having this conversation with Captain America at four in the damn morning in his own damn kitchen. He turned back around, intent on ignoring him, but the whole ‘not saying whatever popped into his head whenever he felt like it’ thing was one that had just never worked well for Tony. 

“I never said that. When did I say that? JARVIS, have I ever said that I disliked the good Captain?” 

_”No Sir, however there have been-”_

“Thanks JARVIS. See Cap? Never said it.” Tony didn’t need to be able to see Steve’s face to know he was probably scowling. Or something. Did Captain America scowl? 

“Is everything a joke to you Stark? Look, if you want to hate me, that’s fine. It’s not my job to make everyone like me. It is my job to make sure that everyone on this team functions like one, though.” And wasn’t that poetic, that in two seconds flat the guy had managed to turn this whole thing into a lecture. 

“So all I’m asking is that you keep your problem with me off the field. Like it or not, you’ve got more than just you to worry about now,” he said, as if Tony didn’t know, as if he had only been looking out for his own neck by joining the Avengers Initiative in the first place. Somehow, by some miracle of god or whoever Tony managed to bite back the litany of retorts that threatened to come careening out of his mouth. 

The silence stretched on, the only sound coming from the clinking of Tony’s tools as he continued to work. After a few minutes Tony heard Steve mutter something under his breath. Or perhaps it was just a sigh. Tony expected him to just walk away after that. He didn’t expect to hear Steve’s voice again.

“Goodnight.” Another pause and then, “Thank you for fixing the microwave.” It figured that Steve would still find a way to be polite even after reprimanding Tony like he was a spoiled, selfish, child.

Tony didn’t know why he bothered anyways. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t just made his opinion of Tony perfectly clear, and it certainly wasn’t the kind of opinion that usually warranted manners and politeness. And what did Steve know anyways? It wasn’t like Tony got out in the field and ignored orders just to get under the man’s skin. That would just be juvenile, and certainly not satisfying to Tony at all. Not even the slightest bit. Nope, it was just that his plans – though perhaps more reckless and more…explode-y – were better and got the job done faster. Working with other people was one thing. Being told how to do the job was something else entirely. It wasn’t his style. And Tony Stark was all about style. Tony sighed again and picked up his tools, turning off the light and heading back down to the workshop where it was safe. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is my first time writing an Avengers fic and it's been nagging at the back of my head for a while, so I figured I'd give it a shot. Hopefully I got Tony's voice down okay and hopefully this whole thing doesn't end in disaster. =P
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing, or this couple would be canon.


	2. Chapter 2

The problem with orders, in general, was that Tony Stark just wasn’t designed to follow them. He had never particularly been one to do what other people told him. In fact, he was more likely to do the exact opposite, a strategy that had – more or less, with more being used very loosely – always worked out for him. So it should have come as no surprise when, during one particularly dangerous mission involving large, ferocious reptiles in downtown Manhattan, Tony completely ignored an order from the Cap, switched off his comm link and shot into the middle of the fray. 

Sure it was dangerous, and sure, Tony had almost been badly injured despite the suit, but it had worked, hadn’t it? And it had been a hell of a lot faster than waiting for Mr. Bigshot Military Strategist to come up with a good plan. Given all of that, Tony was rather satisfied with himself and, though he didn’t really expect Steve to be pleased, he certainly wasn’t expecting the verbal ass kicking that followed his performance and their return to Shield HQ. 

“What the hell were you thinking Stark?” Captain America’s voice was clipped and short, and obviously well beyond irritated. As if the look on his face hadn’t said all of that already. For a split second, Tony could only stare at him. Seriously? He has just saved the whole damn city and Captain America was _angry_ about it? 

“Uh let’s see, I was thinking, save New York.” Steve’s hood was down now as he looked at Tony and for some reason that seemed to change something, like it always did. 

“You turned your comm. link off in the middle of a fight! You ignored a direct order! You took an unnecessary risk that could have-” 

“Hey, I did my job! The city is safe and it’s not like I put the team in danger so get off my ass.” Tony snapped, the adrenaline wearing off to be replaced by anger and frustration. 

“You put yourself in danger Tony!” Tony felt like the wind had been knocked out of him and he tried to think of something to say, something to throw back at him so he wouldn’t be left floundering like an idiot, standing there in stunned silence. But the moment for that had come and gone and now Steve was sighing and running a hand through his hair and looking away from Tony. 

“Just don’t let it happen again Stark.” And then he was gone, walking down the hall and Tony couldn’t do anything but stare at his retreating back. He turned and made a frustrated noise under his breath and scowled when he realized that he wasn’t alone. Natasha was standing across the room, leaning against the door frame. 

“What?” Tony snapped, glaring at her. “Are you planning on lecturing me too?” 

So, mouthing off to the Black Widow was probably not the smartest thing he had ever done in his life, given that she could probably kill him with her pinky finger, but he was too irate to care at the moment. Natasha just stared at him critically for a few seconds and straightened up, shaking her head at him before she left too. Tony just stood there, unable to comprehend what it was he seemed to be missing. 

Hours later and he was every bit as lost as ever. He was down in the lab, making some upgrades to the armor to give it a better defense for crushing forces, like giant scaly fists. Of course, it was nothing that needed doing as a result of today’s episode. Today had been fine; just a close call. There were a lot of them in this line of work and he was used to it. 

What he wasn’t used to was the tone of Steve’s voice earlier. _‘You put yourself in danger Tony!’_. It was like the sentence was on repeat in his head. Not, of course, that he had spent the last couple hours focusing on it. But in the back of his mind it was there and, like a lot of problems he couldn’t solve right away, his mind was picking at it, working it over, trying to figure it out. Whether he wanted it to or not. But he was close now, he was sure. 

Tony thought back to all the comments Steve had made about the team in the past. He was the ‘team leader’. It only made sense that he would be… _concerned_ if a member of the team was out of commission. But it didn’t extend beyond that. It couldn’t, because that was just too much for Tony to consider. The math of it all just wouldn’t add up. So he would just chalk it up to obligatory concern for a teammate and put it to rest. 

Tony reached for his coffee mug and brought it to his lips, frowning when he realized it was empty. Now how had that happened? 

He stood up, stretching gingerly. He was a little sore, a few fairly deep bruises here and there – full metal body armor or no, Tony took a beating when he fought. But it was nothing he couldn’t handle. He could practically hear Captain America, chewing him out for not going to medical after the fight. Again. Oh dear god there was something wrong with him, if he was hearing Steve’s voice in his head. He needed more coffee. Now. 

Tony made his way over to the elevator and pressed the button that would take him up to the common areas. When the door slid open, the first thing that reached him was the noise coming from the kitchen; a clamor of voices and utensils. The second thing he noticed was the smell of food, and good food at that. It must have been breakfast time, which meant he had been down in the shop all night and into the next morning. 

Breakfast, like any meal at Avenger’s tower, was a rather chaotic thing. Almost everyone had something to say and usually at the same time as everyone else, there was arguing over who was doing dishes and who made the best omelets or pancakes or whatever. And of course, all of this was on top of the fact that there were at least two people who could eat Tony’s weight in food at one sitting. It usually wasn’t Tony’s thing. He didn’t really do the whole ‘family mealtime’. But this morning, unlike all the other handful of mornings that he had wandered up at mealtime, he was irritated by it. 

No, not by it. By the fact that it was happening without him. Why it bothered him he couldn’t say, exactly. It just did. And somehow it sort of made of him smug too. Finally he had caught the great Captain America doing something selfish. Not inviting a teammate to breakfast, how very rude. He could totally work with this. 

“Ah! Tony my friend! Good morning to you!” Thor said enthusiastically. Tony almost cringed at the volume of it, but flashed a grin. “The good Captain was just saying that perhaps someone should come retrieve you so that you may break fast with us. Will you be joining us for the meal?” 

Tony felt his expression sour. Of course. Tony shook his head and gestured with his empty mug. 

“Nah, just came to get my caffeine fix.” Thor looked positively crestfallen and Tony was reminded that, on occasion, he actually really liked some of his new tenants. Tony turned to the coffee pot to see Steve standing there, a look of pointed disapproval on his face as he stood in front of the machine, blocking Tony’s path. The inventor’s eyes narrowed. 

“You shouldn’t skip breakfast.” And it wasn’t Steve saying it. It was Captain America. It was an order. Tony scoffed. 

“Please. Not everyone needs eight square meals a day, Spangles.” Tony said, easily, trying to step around him. 

But Steve was bulky enough that he only had to shift slightly to the left and he was once again preventing Tony from getting any closer to the coffee maker. He crossed his arms over his chest in a gesture that might have intimidated most people. It only served to piss Tony off. 

“When was the last time you ate, Stark?” This caught Tony rather off guard and he had to think about it for a moment. And then he caught himself. 

“Oh I’m sorry. I didn’t realize Fury made you my babysitter when he put you in charge out on the field. Should we start calling you Mr. Mom?” 

There was a snort of laughter – probably from Clint – but it was silenced by a scathing look from Natasha. In fact, the room around them had gone rather quiet, but Tony hardly noticed. The two continued staring at each other and then finally, much to Tony’s surprise, Steve relented. He sighed and something about him seemed to lessen. He wasn’t Captain America anymore, he was just Steve. He appeared to struggle for a minute. 

“That’s not what…You should remember to eat.” He muttered, but stepped out of Tony’s way nonetheless. Tony recovered from his surprise quickly enough and stepped forward to fill his mug with his much beloved beverage. He had won this round. As he turned and looked at Steve, now sitting in a chair and facing decidedly away from him, he tried not to notice the redness of his ears and the back of his neck or the feeling of not-quite-guilt it brought. And if he snagged a few pieces of toast on his way out of the kitchen, well that was none of Captain America’s business.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go, chapter 2. Hope you all enjoy it. I'm still not sure how many chapters this will be, but hopefully I'll be able to update it about once a week, give or take a few days so just bear with me. Thanks for reading
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing


	3. Chapter 3

Relationships were hard. It wasn’t like programming a computer code, where the variables could be defined and certain commands could be executed and the whole thing could be debugged in just a few hours. When a relationship stopped working, it wasn’t the same as when code stopped working. You couldn’t go back and find the error and correct the syntax. Once something was said it couldn’t be unsaid, and once a relationship was broken, it couldn’t be fixed. So Tony usually avoided them. It was just simpler that way because, in all honesty, Tony understood computers better than he understood people. 

But Pepper was different. For the first time in, well, ever he was sure, Tony wanted to be with someone. Just one someone. Which wasn’t saying that he lost his attraction to everyone else because hey, hot was hot and he was Tony Stark. But he tried, he really did. And for a while they worked, and they worked well. It was a strange and almost comforting thing, being able to fall asleep with the same person night after night and not have the uncontrollable urge to flee in the morning. Pepper was tough and strong and capable and perfect. Except when she couldn’t be. It wasn’t until after the whole mess with Loki and the Chitauri that Tony started noticing little chinks in her armor. 

A grey hair here and there, standing out against the bright red of the rest of it. The constant weariness in her voice, or the slight note of panic in it whenever he called her, like she was expecting the worst. He knew she worried about him, but he should’ve realized it went beyond that. Pepper was wonderful, but she was only human. There was only so much she could handle. 

She could handle being Tony’s CEO; stocks were up, PR was good, and she kept him in line and only let him cause damage on occasion. She could handle being his girlfriend; Tony felt anchored, someone needed him for more than money or a suit, and she kept him in line and only let him cause damage on occasion. But being both together was too much. Tony should’ve seen it coming. Or maybe he did and just didn’t want to admit it. There were more business trips, more meetings, more of everything but them. But it could still work. Tony could make it work, he could hold it all together. He could do…something. 

So Tony scheduled a day, just for them. He would take Pepper to that art gallery she had been wanting to go to and then he would take her to dinner at her favorite restaurant. In hindsight, the fact that she walked in the door on her phone should’ve set off the warning bells. Tony flashed his best smile at her. The not smarmy one, because she absolutely hated that one and even Tony knew the expression ‘time and place’. She glanced back at him and continued her conversation for a few more moments before finally hanging up the phone with a rather exasperated sigh. 

Tony took a second to look at her. She looked beautiful; she always did. But he looked closer. He could see the anxiety in her eyes, see the toll everything was taking on her. If he knew where to look, he could see that she was breaking. He was breaking her. And it was breaking him, even if he didn’t show it, or couldn’t show it, or didn’t know how. 

“Hey gorgeous. Ready to go?” he asked, grinning. Pepper gave him a look and nodded. 

“Yes, Happy is still waiting outside. You still haven’t told me where we’re going you know,” she sounded annoyed about it. Tony tried not to let it bother him much. It was just Pepper being Pepper. 

“It’s a surprise. Come on, I know how much you like surprises,” he said. Pepper’s smile was real this time. 

“When you’re involved, I’m not so sure that I do,” she said with a laugh. Tony just shrugged and held out his arm like a gentleman, escorting her out to the car. 

“You look great by the way,” he commented as they slid into the back seat. 

A flash of something crossed Pepper’s face, but he chose to ignore it as he handed Happy a slip of paper with the address on it. Happy glanced up and their eyes met in the mirror but he gave a shrug and began to drive. The conversation on the way there was pleasant, but there wasn’t much of it, which was a dynamic Tony wasn’t used to. Being with Pepper was a lot of things, but awkward had never been one of them. Hopefully after tonight everything would be okay. When they arrived outside the gallery and Pepper looked out the window, her eyes widened and she turned to Tony, something strange reflecting back at him. 

“You hate these things,” she said slowly. Tony shrugged. 

“They aren’t so bad when I’m in the mood,” he replied. Pepper stared at him intently for a moment and then her face softened. 

“Oh Tony,” she murmured and the tone of her voice made Tony’s heart sink. 

“Listen Pep, I know that lately-” 

“Tony, you don’t need to try and fix,” she paused, gesturing between them, “this. We both knew it was coming. I didn’t think that-” 

“I thought you know, dinner, a nice date, maybe a trip to Vienna. That could be fun,” Tony continued trying to speak over her, feeling like he might start panicking if he wasn’t careful. Not that Tony Stark panicked. But he might come close right about now. Pepper tried unsuccessfully to interject a few times. 

“Tony, listen to me- Tony!” finally Tony paused, looking a little guilty. Pepper’s voice softened again. 

“Tony, I think we both know that this just isn’t working. I can’t…” and she hesitated, as if it pained her on some level to admit there was something she couldn’t do for him. 

But for once, Tony didn’t need it spelled out for him. 

“I know,” he said softly, and there was regret in every syllable. 

“It’s not y-” Tony shook his head. The whole ‘it’s not you it’s me’ was the last thing he wanted to hear right now. He gave a casual smile and sort of half-shrug. 

“It’s fine. Really. At least now we can say we tried it, right?” There was something in Pepper’s eyes that looked almost like pity. Tony refused to believe it was. There was a slightly awkward pause and then Tony continued, feeling like he was grasping at straws. 

“You’re not going to, you know, quit, are you?” he asked, trying to make it sound casual. Like if she wanted to, it would be fine, when really he didn’t think it would be fine at all. Pepper laughed and it was warm and wonderful and suddenly Tony felt like everything was right with the world again, or close enough that it wouldn’t just come crashing down around his ears. 

“Tony, what’s your social security number?” she asked, and the whole thing suddenly felt very familiar. Tony grinned. 

“Five,” he answered. Pepper’s smile was just the right amount of smug but pleased with him. 

“You’re still missing the other eight, and I’ll still be here for that,” she said. And it that moment, Tony had never loved anyone as much as he loved her. 

It wasn’t a bad breakup, as far as breakups were concerned. But that didn’t stop Tony from being in a piss poor mood about it. He had gone home early that night and, upon seeing the sympathetic look on Clint’s face – Clint, of all people! – he shut himself in the workshop, working, working, trying to keep his mind off of it. It wasn’t until much later that night – or possibly the next night, he wasn’t really sure – that he emerged. And at that point it was only for necessity. He was out of coffee. Again. And he was irritated about it. Again. 

It occurred to him that he ought to just get a coffee maker down there, and then he realized that at one point he had. But that had been one of Pepper’s stipulations; no coffee maker in the lab. Because if that was the only way she was going to get Tony out of the workshop then so be it, she was not above blackmail. Tony had learned his lesson very quickly. But now that he didn’t have her threatening him, he could get another one he supposed. And wasn’t that a fantastic consolation prize? A coffee maker in exchange for a girlfriend. Wonderful. 

Tony stepped into the kitchen and froze. The universe was out to get him. It was hell-bent on making his life miserable, he was sure of it. Because Tony wasn’t alone in the kitchen. And not only was he not alone, the person standing in front of the stove making what appeared to be grilled cheese sandwiches was the last person on earth he wanted to deal with just then. 

Steve hadn’t turned around. Tony looked at the empty mug in his hands, weighing his options. On the one hand, no coffee but no lecture – which he was sure to get, about how something, something, something, hero, blah, blah, blah choices, etc. – and on the other, coffee and extremely awkward, unwanted interaction. Tony’s mind was made up for him. 

“I know you’re standing there.” 

Steve still hadn’t turned to face him. How the hell had – oh. Super soldier hearing. Right. Well, he was in up to his ears now, might as well slip under. Tony sauntered over to the counter, putting his mug in the sink, ignoring the meaningful glance Steve cast from it to the dishwasher. 

“Don’t worry Cap, I’m not planning on staying,” he said as he pulled the coffee maker forward. Steve shifted on his feet, looking at the coffee maker instead of Tony. 

“Actually, I was going to ask you if you wanted a sandwich,” he said finally. 

Tony blinked and glanced at the stove where three grilled cheeses were sizzling away in a pan next to a small pot of tomato soup. Then he glanced at the clock. He considered for a moment before he remembered that yeah, Captain America. He was quite sure that the cons outweighed the pros in this instance 

“No thanks.” 

If Steve were bothered by the rejection, he didn’t show it. Tony turned to lean against the counter while he waited for his cup to brew, glad that the new machine was so fast. Silence settled between them and then Steve spoke again. 

“Everyone is getting sort of worried Stark. We haven’t seen you in a few days,” Steve’s voice was quiet and for once there was no hint of reproach or disapproval. Tony also had to think for a few seconds; it hadn’t felt like a few days. Had he really been down there that long? 

He glanced at the sandwiches again and suddenly realized he was starving. It was like an itch; he hadn’t thought about it for a while, so it had gone away. Now that he had, it was practically all he could think of. 

“Well, nothing to be worried about. I’m fine, just busy. I’m a busy guy you know,” Tony said, paused, and then continued, “but if you don’t mind…” he eyed the sandwiches pointedly. 

Steve just nodded and grabbed another few slices of bread and cheese, making one up quickly and putting it into the pan before flipping the others. Silence reigned again and it seemed to grow more awkward with each passing second, if only for the fact that Tony could tell that Steve desperately wanted to say something. Finally it seemed he couldn’t contain it anymore. 

“You know, if you uh, need someone to talk to you can talk to,” he hesitated, as if he thought better of what he was going to say and changed his mind, “any one of us,” he finished. 

Tony barely held back the laughter. Captain America, who hadn’t so much looked at a girl twice since he woke in this century was offering to help him talk out his breakup angst? That was priceless. 

“Ah, thanks, but you know I’m fine. Besides, I don’t really do the whole ‘taking advice thing’.” 

Steve frowned a little but didn’t say anything as he handed Tony a plate and mug of soup. He made up a plate for himself and took a seat at the counter. Tony considered for a moment and then did the same, leaving an empty space between them. They ate silently and thought it wasn’t exactly companionable, it seemed to lack a lot of the usual tension. But there was one question that was really bothering Tony. One that he really wanted an answer to. He would blame it on lack of sleep or caffeine later, but just then he couldn’t stop the words that tumbled out. 

“Why don’t you ever call me Tony?” he blurted out. 

Steve froze and then looked at him closely, almost like he was trying to work a puzzle out. There was that crease in his forehead again. But his eyes hadn’t done that freezing thing they always did. If anything he just looked wary, like he thought Tony was making fun of him. Finally Steve looked away, which was a relief. His gaze had been making Tony feel like he was being dissected. He looked away, but still didn’t say anything for a moment. Tony had had enough. 

“I mean, it doesn’t really matter. I just figured-” 

“No, it’s fine,” Steve looked a little uncomfortable and almost confused. “I guess I just didn’t realize I was doing it.” 

This struck Tony as odd because he was pretty sure Steve never did anything without realizing it. But he didn’t question it. He didn’t want to turn this into an argument. Probably because it was the most pleasant interaction he and Captain America had ever had. Tony gave a smile that was only half forced. 

“Hey, shit happens. I wouldn’t have blamed you if you had been doing it on purpose. We aren’t exactly-” 

“Sta-Tony, that’s not how it is. I’m sorry.” Tony shrugged again, a little surprised by the apology and quiet fell between them once more; the kind Tony was used to. Tony finished eating first and stood, taking his dishes to the sink. He could feel Steve’s eyes on him and he started to just set them down there before he hesitated and then put them neatly in the dishwasher. When he turned back, Steve’s expression was strange. 

“Thank you,” he said, and for some reason it almost sounded like a question. Tony just nodded. 

“Thanks for the chow. G’night Cap,” Tony said as he grabbed his still warm mug of coffee and headed back to the elevator. 

“Goodnight Tony.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So to those of you who have been following the story, thank you. For those of you who are new, thank you as well. I've decided to take a slightly different route than I originally intended and, sorry to disappoint, but this story is now going to be pre-slash and will probably be around 5 chapters. There will be a sequel. So stay tuned. Once again, thanks for reading ^_^
> 
> Disclaimer: Still poor and Avenger-less


	4. Chapter 4

Tony Stark’s favorite part about being Tony Stark was that he always got what he wanted. Except when he didn’t. And right now he was experiencing one of those moments where he couldn’t get what he wanted, because he didn’t even know where to start. Hell, he didn’t even know what it was he wanted in the first place, really. After that night in the kitchen, things between Tony and Steve had gone back to the way they had before, with the exception of the fact that Steve rarely addressed him as Stark these days. 

While it was a fairly welcome change in most ways, Tony wasn’t sure how much he liked the added level of familiarity when Steve was reprimanding him. Which still happened. Often. But even so, Tony couldn’t help but feel that he’d been jilted. He hadn’t really expected any fairy-tale type overnight change where he and Steve were suddenly best friends but he hadn’t expected things to go back to the way they were either. It just didn’t seem right. 

And Tony didn’t know what to do about it. And it frustrated him, especially since he was used to having all the answers. Or almost all of them anyways. Enough to get things done. But he didn’t even have that at the moment! And who the heck could he ask for help on this? 

Not Pepper, because she would give him one of her looks and promptly inform him of all the ways he was wrong about Steve. Tony wanted someone on his side for once. Not Natasha, he could just picture the smugness behind her eyes as she kept a perfectly blank face. It would give her too much pleasure to see Tony so uncomfortable about the whole thing. Coulson was probably on that list as well. Clint and Thor were out of the question – Clint would laugh his ass off and Thor would probably suggest some sort of duel. So that left Bruce. 

A not altogether unreasonable idea. Bruce was good at keeping calm and thinking things through, so by default he had to be good at giving advice, right? At the very least, it would give Tony someone to talk to about this mess and this thing that he wanted but didn’t know how to name. 

Bruce was in his lab, like usual. Unlike Tony’s, Bruce’s lab was neat and organized with a place for everything and everything in its place. The scientist looked up when the doors slid open and Tony stepped in. He smiled. His glasses were slightly crooked on his nose, like he just couldn’t be bothered to fix them. Tony sauntered over and glanced down at the long list of calculations Bruce was running. 

“What’s this?” he asked curiously, his eyes scanning it quickly. 

“Something Richards sent me. He said he just wanted a bit of advice, but between you and me, I think he’s in over his head on this one,” Bruce said. Tony snorted. 

“When isn’t he?” If Tony had a dollar for every time they ended up cleaning up some mess that Reed Richards had inadvertently caused he’d…well, alright, realistically he probably couldn’t get any richer. But still. Bruce chuckled and looked up again. 

“So what are you here for?” he asked. Tony shrugged nonchalantly. Bruce gave him a look. 

“Well I was just thinking that-” Tony stopped as the door slid open again. 

“Dr. Banner I was wondering if you could help me figure this new – oh.” Steve stopped as well, looking from Bruce to Tony. “Sorry, am I interrupting something?” 

Tony’s eyes zeroed in on the newest StarkPhone clutched in Steve’s hand and his curiosity got the better of him, wondering why he was here. He shook his head. Bruce shot him another look and then turned back to Steve. 

“Uh, no. What can I do for you Steve?” 

Steve’s brow furrowed and as he looked over at Tony, there was uncertainty and a hint of the usual chill there. He walked over to Bruce and turned deliberately so that Tony couldn’t see what they were doing. But Tony could still hear them. He scowled to himself. Steve was asking if there was a way to change the ring tone on his phone, which Tony may or may not have made the ‘Star-Spangled Man’ when he gave Steve the phone last month. Okay…so maybe that was a little below the belt but it had seemed like a good idea at the time. Famous last words. 

Tony waited there, arms crossed, watching the two with narrowed eyes until finally Steve thanked Bruce and left. Bruce sighed in an exhausted sort of way before Tony even said anything. 

“So…how long has that been going on, Mr. Tech consultant?” Tony asked, sounding more bitter than he meant to. He couldn’t help it. It was his stuff, his tech. It irked him that Steve would asked Bruce about it when he, the inventor, was just as close and knew the thing like the back of his hand and could – 

“A while. But you can’t exactly blame him.” Bruce said, though it didn’t sound particularly accusing. Things usually didn’t when Bruce was saying them. It was like he was a calm guru. Which made sense, given the whole, anger issue thing. But right now Tony didn’t exactly feel his calmest. Bruce looked up and gave a little shrug and a sort of half smile. 

“I mean, you’re not always very… approachable when it comes to some things,” he said and then looked back down at his calculations. 

Tony’s frown deepened. Him? Unapproachable? Come on, he was the life of the party. He was Tony Stark, the public’s favorite public figure. Most days. But he thought he was quite approachable, thank you very much. And he made sure to broach the subject with Pepper when he called her from the lab about a half hour later. 

“This had better be important Tony because I am supposed to-” 

“Am I unapproachable?” 

“be meeting with – wait, what?” 

“Am I unapproachable?” he repeated, more slowly. 

There was a pause. 

“Is this about Steve?” 

Tony nearly choked on his coffee. 

“What? No! Why would this be about him?” 

“Tony, I know you well enough to realize that you’re bothered by the relationship between you -“ 

“That’s just it Pep! There isn’t one, and I don’t get it. What the hell did I ever do to him? I mean he doesn’t act this way towards anyone else. What’s his problem?” 

Pepper sighed quietly on the other end of the line. 

“Tony, try to put it in his perspective. He woke up completely out of his element, everything is chaotic and different. Everything he knows has changed, and then there’s you.” 

Tony nodded before realizing she couldn’t see him. 

“Yes, I get it, I get it. But is that really any reason to-” 

“You and Steve did not exactly get off on the right foot. And you’ve been holding a grudge – don’t try to interrupt, you know it’s true. You’re the closest thing to anything he remembers and you’ve made it clear you don’t want him around. What is he supposed to do Tony? He might not be as tech savvy as you, but he’s not an idiot.” 

There was a pause but Tony frowned deeply. Why did Pepper know so much about how Steve was feeling? Had they…had they been talking about him? 

“When did I say that?” Tony said, sounding defensive. 

“Say what?” She sounded impatient, which didn’t help Tony’s mood much. 

“When did I say I didn’t want him around?” 

There was a long pause. 

“You don’t even remember do you?” 

Okay, wait, back up, what? What didn’t he remember? 

“That night, you talked them all into going out?” 

Yes, alright, Tony remembered that, what about it? Pepper made an exasperated sound. 

“You told him Tony. You looked him in the eye and told him you didn’t want to be his friend.” 

Tony felt his mouth fall open. He was pretty sure he would remember that, telling Steve Rogers they weren’t friends. He…he had been drinking a lot that night. He had been alone for a few minutes. He had remembered something he hadn’t wanted to. A girl. One he hadn’t gotten to in time. He hadn’t said anything to anyone; didn’t think he’d needed to. She wasn’t the only civilian casualty. But she was the only one he could’ve saved. And he hadn’t. 

Tony could hear Pepper still talking, asking him if he was there. 

“What?” he replied distractedly. “Yeah, yeah, look Pep, I gotta go. I’ll uh talk to you soon.” 

He ended the call, hearing her still calling his name. But he could talk to her later. He didn’t much feel like talking to her at the moment. Or anyone for that matter. Tony sighed and buried his face in his hands, gripping his hair. He had gone out for some air, Steve had followed. Just to make sure he was okay. 

Tony had snapped. 

_“I don’t need anything from you Rogers, nobody does. I’m not my father, and we aren’t friends. Don’t act like you know me.”_

It wasn’t the first time Tony had taken his issues out on someone else – though thankfully this time it didn’t end up with someone else taking possession of one of his suits – but he didn’t regret it any less. He was also more than a little angry with himself. How the hell could he forget something like that? Fuck! No wonder Steve had looked at him like that when…Jesus he had made a mess of everything. Well, at least now that he knew what was wrong, he could fix it right? How much harder could it be than rewiring a circuit board? Yeah. He could do this. He could totally do this. Right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all, sorry for the delay in updating, I've been busy. Once again, thanks for reading. Hope you enjoy. :)
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing.


	5. Chapter 5

As it turned out, fixing things with Steve was not as easy as Tony had anticipated. Of course it wasn’t. Why would it be? Things never really were. But he had expected it to be easier than this at least, now that everything made sense. And it did, really, once he stopped to think about it. All the walls, the ice, the cold attitude. That wasn’t Steve. Well, it was. But only because he had made Steve feel the need to be that way. Because Steve was great. Steve was a genuine guy who wanted to keep the peace and who might actually have wanted to be Tony’s friend. But Tony had pushed him away. And Steve had just been doing what Tony wanted. Because what else could he do?

Yes, after thinking it over, it all clicked. But thinking about it wasn’t enough. It wasn’t getting the job done. And this was a job Tony needed done. Yesterday. But it seemed so much harder catch Steve on his own now. Or maybe it always had been and Tony just hadn’t noticed because he had never actually tried before. It seemed like Steve was always busy, always doing something. Didn’t the guy ever sleep or relax or spend time alone? 

The first time Tony tried to more or less corner Steve – and he hated thinking of it that way because it just made him sound so desperate – He had found him in the gym. Which would’ve been fine except he was currently sparring with Natasha and the look she shot Tony when he walked in was enough to let him know that he should just keep walking. The next time he found Steve and Coulson sitting at the kitchen table, going over reports of some kind. They were too engrossed to really notice Tony. Or at least, Coulson pretended to be. Tony was quite certain Coulson had glanced up at him. But Tony didn’t feel like dealing with Cap’s number one fan just then, so he made his coffee and went back down to the workshop. And after that, he more or less gave up on it. Sort of. As much as Tony Stark could give up on something anyways. 

He stayed down in the workshop for a while, working on things, improving things, always trying to keep everything state of the art and top of the line. Because that was just what Tony did. So when Pepper called and asked how things were going, he at least had an excuse as to why he hadn’t made any progress with Steve. The only problem being that Pepper saw through that in a heartbeat. She always did. She knew him too well. So, she made him promise that he would try again, because this wasn’t good for either of them. And she was right. She always was. 

Tony sat and thought for a while, wondering what to say. It shouldn’t be too hard. He was good at making public speeches and things of that nature. So talking to Steve Rogers – and that would be the key, catching him when he was just Steve and not Cap – shouldn’t be so hard. The guy was, after all, ‘just a kid from Brooklyn’. He didn’t realize how much time had slipped by until he glanced at the clock and saw that it was quite early rather than quite late. He guessed Steve would be in bed right now, fast asleep. But…then again… 

“Jarvis, find Steve for me.” 

_“Scans show that Captain Rogers is in the gym. And might I add that perhaps now might be a good time to keep your promise to Ms. Potts?”_ Tony rolled his eyes. 

“Sometimes I wonder where your attitude comes from.” 

_“I can’t imagine, Sir.”_

Tony chuckled and stood up, stretching. Well, he had to admit, Jarvis might have been right. Tony made his way up to the gym, and hesitated outside the door, taking a deep breath. He wasn’t nervous. Nope. This would be easy. But the door slid open and Tony’s rehearsed smile fell from his face. 

Steve was standing at the punching bag, hitting it hard enough to leave fist sized indents in it. But Steve wasn’t practicing. He was unleashing…something. Tony couldn’t see his face, but he didn’t really need to. His shoulders were tense, his stance was rigid, his whole posture screamed anger. 

It was lucky, really, that Tony had built this gym specifically for people like Steve and Thor, or he’d have been worried that the bag would simply be ripped from the ceiling. Tony just stood there, watching, knowing that this was personal and private and he should just leave before Steve noticed he was there. There was a grunt and Steve hit the bag hard before his shoulders slumped and he leaned forward, his forehead pressing against it. He was breathing heavily. Tony knew how much it took to leave Steve winded. He had been at this a while. He had no doubt that if Steve were anyone else, his knuckles would be raw and bloody. He should go. He really should. Tony wasn’t always very tactful, but even he knew when to leave something alone. Except, apparently he didn’t. 

“So, did that bag insult your mother or something?” 

And dammit why did he have to turn it into a joke. Steve nearly jumped, but when he turned his face was calm. Or as calm as he could be, Tony guessed. His eyes gave it away. Not ice. Fire. Tony didn’t know blue eyes could blaze like that until Steve’s gaze was directed at him. Finally Steve looked away. 

“Sorry. Guess I got carried away. If you want to use the gym, I’m about done for the night,” Steve said. 

Tony bit his tongue. Literally. Anything he could do to stay quiet, to not point out the fact that it was technically his gym and he didn’t really need Steve’s permission to use it. It wasn’t until Steve was brushing past him that Tony realized he had just been standing there internalizing. 

“Hey, can we talk?” The words sounded almost…accusing. But Tony couldn’t help it. It was that or pleading. Steve hesitated for a moment. 

“Can it wait? I’m not in the mood for an argument.” 

And the words were so plaintive and honest that Tony felt a pang of something like guilt. Steve had come to expect that any dealing with Tony would lead to an argument. And Tony didn’t really have anything to defend himself against that. And that irritated Tony. Even if it was true. But that just how he was. He lashed out before someone could get to him. Better them than him. But this had to be done. He would just have to bite the bullet and deal with this. 

“Well that’s good. Because I wasn’t looking for one. And if it’s all the same to you, this probably shouldn’t wait any more,” he tried his best to keep his voice level and when Steve turned back to look at him, his eyes searching, Tony was standing there, his arms uncrossed and hanging at his sides. 

Steve didn’t say anything, but just nodded. It was that awkward silence again. Everything Tony had rehearsed for this moment seemed to just slip away from him. He wasn’t used to this. He felt vulnerable. His hand went to his chest, rubbing over the arc reactor self-conciously. The moment he realized he was doing it, he dropped his hand again. 

“Look, I know we don’t always get along, and I don’t know about you, but I’m kind of sick of it.” 

To his credit, Steve hadn’t scoffed, hadn’t done anything really, except narrow his eyes a little. He didn’t say anything either, though. And Tony realized what was happening. Steve was waiting for him. Steve was going to make him say it. That condescending pri- 

“That makes two of us.” Tony blinked. Wait, what? “I was wrong about you. And I wanted to apologize.” 

Steve was…he was apologizing? If there had been anyone else around, Tony would’ve nodded, backed himself up, maybe reminded Steve that he had done exactly what Steve had said he was incapable of doing; laying his life down for everyone else. But he didn’t. Because Steve knew that. Everyone did. And while it wasn’t nothing, it didn’t need mentioning right now. And neither did the fact that even the great Captain America made mistakes. Because Steve knew that too. He knew that even more than Tony, and Tony could see that, suddenly. 

He could see that in the lines of Steve’s face, the slump of his shoulders. And Tony realized, as he stood there looking at him, that as hard as Steve was on Tony – or anyone else, for that matter – he was harder on himself. 

“Oh come on. That’s not fair. You can’t take all the credit for being an ass.” 

Steve’s eyes widened and he blinked in confusion. But Tony just gave a little shrug, a sort of half smile playing on his lips. 

“I know what I said to you, at that bar. It’s not true you know. We do need you. Lots of people do.” He could’ve said more, but he knew Steve understood. He could tell by the way Steve was looking at him now. “I mean, just look at Coulson. He’s your number one fan, you know.” 

A slow smile had been forming on Steve’s face, but now it was there and it was bright and Tony found himself smiling too, even as Steve shook his head. Why had this been so hard before? Why had Tony waited so long to fix this? It didn’t feel hard, or bad. It was actually kind of…great. 

“So…uh, you know. Friends? Or whatever?” he asked, looking up to meet Steve’s eyes. 

But Steve was looking down at Tony’s outstretched hand. Tony was starting to get nervous. And then Steve reached out and took Tony’s hand, chuckling warmly as he shook it. 

“Yeah. Yeah, I’d like that.” 

And Tony was shocked at how easy it had all been – and how warm Steve’s hand was. Of course…it probably wouldn’t be that easy to fix. They would still butt heads. They probably always would. But they’d get over it. Because they were superheroes, and now they were friends. Or getting there. Steve pulled his hand back and Tony’s hand suddenly felt cold. He ignored it by putting his hands in his pockets. 

“Anyways, I’m going to hit the hay. I’ll uh, see you tomorrow Tony,” Steve said, rubbing the back of his neck a little. But his eyes were still warm and he was still smiling a bit. 

“Yeah. G’night then, Cap.” And then Tony was alone. But it was okay. Because it had been an icing problem. And he had finally figured it out. 

Even if it left new things to figure out in its place

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here it is, the end of this story. Sorry it's been so long. The next story will be up as soon as I can get to it. Thanks for sticking with the story and hope you enjoyed it! 
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing


End file.
